Summary

The image shows a young girl underneath swings at a closed playground at Rogers Reserve in Maidstone, Victoria, during the COVID-19 pandemic on 10 April 2020.

The young girl, Frankie, and her family at the time lived in a small townhouse with no backyard and used the local park as their backyard. Frankie loved playing on the playground equipment and would look forward to visiting the Reserve each day. All playgrounds were closed during the first lockdown in Victoria from early 2020 and didn't reopen until the 14th of September 2020. Being two years old at the time, Frankie didn't understand why she couldn't play on the swings and other equipment. In the image she has a bewildered expression. Her father, observing her at the time, found it disturbing.

With the swings wrapped around the top beam of the equipment and hazard tape across the whole playground, Frankie's father thought the scene looked like the playground had been vandalised. He felt as if they had lost the swings. Because of this he called this image 'The Lost Swings of Maidstone'.


During the first Victorian lockdown, people could only leave their homes for food and supplies, medical care and care giving, exercise, and work or education. While the playgrounds were closed, Frankie and her family still went on bike rides for exercise and being out in the open air.

Playgrounds closed again in 2021 on the 16th of August due to rising numbers of Covid cases in Melbourne and people gathering in large groups at playgrounds, but reopened 17 days later on the 3rd of September with restrictions such as only one parent being present, all adults wearing masks, and no eating or drinking at playgrounds.

This photograph was taken by the father of the young girl on his iPhone, it has been colour altered in Photoshop, and later offered to the Museum towards the 'Collecting the Curve' project to document the COVID-19 pandemic in Victoria.

Description of Content

Young girl looking bewildered underneath swings wrapped around top beam at playground.

Physical Description

Digital photograph, it has been colour altered using Photoshop to be sepia in tone with the girl's dress highlighted in blue.

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